


Inhuman

by ShoyzzArt



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Gen, Inhuman, Peter Parker Whump, Peter has wings, Reveal, wing fic au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:48:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28133442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShoyzzArt/pseuds/ShoyzzArt
Summary: Peter gets ready for his real actual, internship. Today's another normal day. The only thing is that Peter has a secret.He's not like everybody else, and he has to make no one finds out.Will he make it?ORWingfic Peter with physical and emotional whump <3
Relationships: Bruce Banner & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 5
Kudos: 84
Collections: Irondad Fic Exchange 2020





	1. Chapter 1 - Whump

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Slothbeans](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slothbeans/gifts).



> Hi everyone! This was done specially for Slothbeans!  
> As soon as I read 'wing fic AU' on the list I had to write something! I hope you like it <3

Peter looks himself in the mirror one last time before taking notice of an unruly curl and straightening it out as best he can. He nods at himself, satisfied and walks back into his room looking for his jacket. It’s not that hot outside but he can’t go outside without it. He looks back to see his wings fold neatly against his back and he puts the jacket on, making sure that they aren’t visible.

He gets his backpack and puts it over his shoulder. Walking through the living room to the kitchen, he grabs some energy bars and stuffs them in his backpack. 

May is sitting at the kitchen table, a coffee mug in one hand and her phone in the other.

“Got everything sweetie?” She says, not looking away from her phone.

“Yeah May,” Peter answers in excitement, he zips his backpack closed. He grabs the doorknob and looks back.

“Have fun in the internship,” May says, looking at him now. She sips at her coffee.

“I’m going to the Compound today, remember?”

“Oh that’s right. Must have slipped. Have fun kiddo.” She winks and smiles at him.

“Thanks May, see you later.” Peter closes the door and rushes down the stairs, getting inside the black car waiting for him. He greets the driver politely and they are off. Peter sits upright, not wanting to put too much pressure on his wings considering the long drive ahead of him.

He rests his head gently on his hand and looks outside the window, watching aimlessly as buildings and cars pass by. His mind wanders off to what has happened these last few months. He still can’t believe he got an actual internship with Tony Stark. He always had the talent for science and technology, it was always easy for him. 

He had been going to the Stark Tower every other week and worked with other interns and on rare occasions, with Tony Stark himself. He’s not sure how, but they grew a little closer compared to other interns. They worked on special projects that Peter knew Tony hadn’t mentioned to other people. Tony must have seen something in him but he hasn’t figured that out yet. He guesses Tony took a liking to him.

After the Registration Act, Peter became a little more distant. He wasn’t sure what Tony’s part on it was but he never pried and he didn’t want to draw any suspicions towards him. He was always careful with his wings, making sure to always wear loose clothes to hide them. When the season was cooler, it was easier for him to conceal them. When it was a warm season he always came up with excuses that he couldn’t attend the internship, it was too hot to wear the extra set of clothes. Luckily no one ever questioned him about it.

He’s also grateful though that he doesn’t have to wear glasses anymore. Before his wings, he couldn’t see at all. Nothing. Everything was blurry and he needed his glasses 24/7. Then it all changed, gradually, and he’s not sure but he thinks that he can see even further than normal people. The only downside to it is his enhanced metabolism. His wings take too much energy out of him so he has to eat more to keep his energy levels.

As if on cue, his stomach growls. Going for his backpack sitting on the floor, he takes one of the many energy bars and eats it in silence. Trees pass and the sun warms his face. He smiles when the Compound comes to view. As they come closer, Peter’s leg bounces in excitement. It’s his second time visiting the Compound. The first time was 3 months ago and he had nearly passed out of excitement. 

The car stops and he’s already going for the handle and opening the door, waving the driver goodbye. He goes inside and gets his badge from his front pant pocket holding it to the scanner. The doors open when the green light lights up.

The nears the group of other interns and waits for the event to start. It mainly consisted of an exhibition of the latest tech that SI was working on. A tall man, a guide, calls out and the group follows. 

Peter’s attention is drawn towards one of the exhibits and stands there for a few minutes before he realizes with a start that the rest of the group has moved on. Peter gulps nervously, looking side to side. He was alone in the room. He starts walking where he thinks the group might have gone but he stops and frowns.

A sound catches his attention. At first he thought it was music, but the sound was way too rhythmic to be part of a song. He follows the constant sound and comes close to a door with a ‘Only Personal’ sign. He looks around one last time making sure no one’s looking and goes inside. Most guards were outside the compound, and the security check was always very thorough. But once you were in, there were not that many people around; well, depending on which floor. Peter’s currently on the 3rd floor.

Peter peeks inside the door and sees a long hallway. It’s not as well kept as the rest of the building, clearly being for storage and other things. The high pitch sound is louder but still seems to be further away. He walks forward passing a few doors. Suddenly the noise seems a little further away and he goes back.

He pushes it open and the door creaks. This room is dark, there are no lights installed yet and the walls are bare. Clearly it’s a room in the making. Peter squints his eyes in the dark, straining to see something. In the corner furthest from the door there’s something on the floor. As he gets closer he places his backpack on the floor. He crouches down and notices the black device surrounded by cables. Gentle hands turn the device and that’s when he sees a timer. His hands move away from the device quickly and his heart starts beating faster.

“What? It’s a -” 

“Bomb.” 

Peter jumps at the sudden voice and turns around to see none other than Tony Stark. Peter makes the effort to keep his wings tucked on his back and his heart beats even faster than before. Tony walks quickly towards Peter and he kneels to inspect the bomb, Peter mirrors his movements. They look at each other as the bomb’s timer keeps on ticking. 

“Did you see who did this?”

Peter shakes his head quickly.

“Can you disarm it?” Peter asks hopefully. Now it’s Tony’s time to shake his head.

_ 00.00.45 _

_ 00.00.44 _

_ 00.00.43 _

Tony lifts his left wrist and starts tapping quickly on it with his right hand. His fingers stop suddenly. Tony frowns.

“Can’t call my suit. There’s no signal. There must be some kind of a signal jammer somewhere.” Tony stands up looking back and forth, trying and failing to think of something. He looks up when the room starts flashing with red lights, an alarm goes off. He squints in pain at the sudden noise.

A grunt of pain reaches his ears and he turns to look at Peter. The kid has his hands over his ears, his eyes are closed. His shoulders are high as they can go.

Peter opens his eyes a little and looks at Tony and then down towards the bomb. The tension doesn’t leave his face even as Peter grabs the bomb and stands beside Tony.

“Where’s the nearest window?” Peter shouts over the loud noise filling the room. Red numbers lower with every second that goes by.

_ 00.00.23 _

_ 00.00.22 _

_ 00.00.21 _

“Kid, you can’t throw it out, it wouldn’t matter-”

“Just trust me! Where is it?” Peter looks sternly at Tony. Suddenly Peter looks much older, determination written on his face. Tony nods at him and looks around quickly, his brain thinking where the nearest office with a window could be. 

“Follow me.” He runs out of the room towards the end of the hall and opens a door. He doesn’t look back but he hears footsteps following close behind him. They walk into a mostly empty office. A few tables with tools and ladders are near the end of the room.

Peter is quick to place the bomb gently on the table and grabs a chair. Tony doesn’t have the time to ask what the heck he’s doing when all of a sudden the chair is being thrown towards the window. A loud crashing sound is heard when the chair collides with the window shattering the glass.

Tony’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Peter jogs towards the table and looks at Tony. He stops his movements, pondering about something. He sighs and he looks at Tony briefly.

“I’m sorry,” is all Peter says. Tony looks at him confused but Peter has his back to him. His jacket hits the ground and a pair of dark blue wings spread out. Tony’s mouth opens slightly and a small ‘wow’ escapes his lips. His eyes follow the lines of the wings towards Peter’s back, looking for a harness or something similar, but ... Tony does a double-take and rubs his eyes quickly but the image stays the same. The wings are sprouting out of Peter. Tony is frozen in place while Peter grabs the bomb and runs. 

Tony snaps out of it when he sees Peter jump outside and fall, only to come up flying. Peter flaps his wing to propel him up.

“Kid, wait!” Tony runs to the edge of the window and looks up. The sun blinds him temporarily and he brings his hand up to block it out as much as he can. The sun shines brightly in the sky, contrasting with the dire situation at hand.

Peter takes off as fast as he can. His plans to take the bomb furthest away from the building and the people. After looking at the trees surrounding the area which could result in a wildfire, he goes up. Looking down at the timer of the bomb, he wills his wings to flap faster. He has never tried to fly this fast before, his heart beats fast on his chest due to the exertion.

_ 00.00.05 _

_ 00.00.04 _

_ 00.00.03 _

Peter throws the bomb as high as he can manage and turns around. He brings his dark wings closer to his body and dives. Peter doesn’t turn around when the loud noise fills the air.

The bomb's shockwave reaches him, pushing him to the side near the trees at the back of the Compound. Peter doesn’t have enough time to change directions and he starts falling. He feels multiple branches hit his limbs. He closes his eyes and brings his arms up to cover his head. Not looking where he’s going, his left side collides hard against a tree trunk and he lets out a cry of pain. He keeps falling as more branches scratch at him until finally his body hits the ground. His body rolls on the grass a few times until he comes to a hard stop. 

He’s laying on his stomach on the soft grass that did nothing to cushion his fall. He tries to take a deep breath but his lungs would not expand. He swallows and closes his watering eyes waiting for it to pass. A few tears escape. Slowly, his lungs make way so he can draw some air in. 

He lays there motionless for a few seconds. His whole body hurts and Peter doesn’t feel like moving. He moves his hands closer to his shoulder so he can try to get up. There weren’t many people at the Compound but someone must have seen something and he doesn’t want to risk being discovered. 

After much effort, his arms are folded by his side, he pushes his hands down to lift his body. His side screams in pain and he lets out a pained gasp. He keeps trying, barely lifting himself up. His arms shake, and it suddenly becomes hard to breathe. He moves his wings involuntarily and sudden pain shoots from one of them. His arms give out and he falls against the grass once again with a loud short scream. Black spots dance across his vision and he realizes he’s very tired. The last thing he sees before closing his eyes is the grass being moved by a soft breeze, a few burned feathers fall gently. He hadn’t realized he was so close to the blast when coming down. 

Somewhere in the distance, someone calls his name and he lets sleep take over.


	2. Chapter 2 - Recovery

Peter comes to slowly. Before opening his eyes he feels the soft bed sheets beneath him. He didn’t remember them being this soft. He smiles in his sleepy state. Other senses come to him then. His ears pick up the sound of his alarm. He reaches his left arm blindly towards his nightstand where he sets his phone but it meets air, his arm dangles beside his bed. Then the smell in his room feels weird and he frowns in confusion with his eyes still closed. The alarm picks up again, he’s sure it seems a little louder than before. 

He finally opens his eyes, the blurry image before him looking nothing like his room. He rubs his eyes and the room comes into focus. White clean walls surround him. The alarm on the nightstand beeps faster. He turns his head following where the sound is coming from and he finds a monitor showing a heartbeat. His heartbeat. 

All traces of sleepiness leave him and he’s suddenly invaded with a sense of dread. He stands up on shaky legs. His whole body feels sore and tired. Peter feels bandages covering his torso. When he looks down, he notices he’s not wearing his shirt and there are pads on his chest, but he’s thankful that he still has his jeans on. His arms are covered in small cuts and he can feel bruises. Swallowing nervously he rips the pads off, the heart monitor stops beeping and instead makes the usual flat-line tone. He then grabs the bedsheets to cover himself. When he lifts the sheets, he folds his wings so that he can cover them as well.

Before he can manage that, he screams and his body doubles over in pain. He grabs onto the bed so as to not fall on the ground. His breathing becomes more shallow and he scrunches his eyes and waits for the pain to subside. After a minute goes by, the pain is much more manageable. He opens his eyes and looks to his left-wing where he feels the pain being more intense. In plain sight, it doesn’t look bad at all. The wing has most of its feathers, but a few near the bottom are missing. He’s not sure if it was from the bomb’s blast or from the fall. Peter tries moving it ever so slightly and the pain is back in full force making him grimace. He stays still for a few seconds to get his bearings.

Light footsteps reach his ears and his head shoots up. He then remembers that he still doesn’t know where exactly he is and why. He looks at the back of his hand and rips the IV out. Forgetting the bedsheet he was going to use to cover himself he makes a run for it.

He runs outside his room, stopping outside where he woke up and he looks on both sides in panic, looking for a door, anywhere to escape. When he looks sharply to the left, he sees Tony talking on the phone at the far end of the long hallway, at first not taking notice of Peter. Then Tony suddenly looks up and they look at each other.

“Kid, wait!” Tony yells.

Peter turns the other way running as fast as his feet can carry him.  _ He’s going to bring me in _ . Peter doesn’t know what happens to Inhumans. He has never heard anything but the word  _ experimentation _ always makes it to the front of his mind. This idea seems like a cliche sci-fi movie, but one thing is for certain. People are afraid of what they don’t know and what they can’t control, and they’ll always want to know how things work.  _ How he works _ . 

Peter shudders at the thought. He has to find a way out. Now. He makes a right turn and sees a door, and at its side the sign of an emergency exit. He follows the sign and steps through the door and sees a bunch of stairs. Looking up and down he decides his best chance is up. He doesn’t know how many people there are in the building. He takes two steps at a time. His heart burns from the effort but the adrenaline keeps him moving. 

Peter stumbles when he runs and throws the door open. He closes his eyes briefly due to the sudden sunlight, his hair flies in all directions due to the strong wind. He looks around and finds the place familiar. He walks towards the edge and sees the familiar treetops. He now knows he’s still at the Compound. He’s not sure how much he was unconscious for but the sun is close to set, so it must have quite a few hours. He looks down over the edge and the ground is further than he thought.

Peter figures his best bet is to fly away. He looks at his left-wing and swallows hard. He thinks that it’s going to hurt but he would rather risk that than being caught. 

He hears the sound of the door being opened behind him and he wills himself to flap his wings but he cries out in pain and collapses to the ground on all fours.

“Peter!”

Peter stands up on shaky legs and sees Tony standing by the door. He has his arms raised in a calming manner and his chest is moving fast as well as his breathing.

“Don’t come any closer!” Peter yells stepping back until his foot touches the edge wall. He looks back at the edge, then at Tony, and back at the edge. His breathing quickens not from the pain but from the tightness he feels. He doesn’t know what to do.

“Ok ok, I won’t. Just don’t do anything you’ll regret okay?”

Peter keeps staring at the edge. Maybe he can’t fly but he can surely glide. Well, he thinks he can. He has never tried anything with a broken wing before.

“Please kid, you’re hurt. Come back inside.” Tony dares to take a couple of steps closer to him. Obviously, that’s the wrong thing to do. As soon as Tony does that, Peter climbs clumsily over the edge. Said edge is wide enough for him to stand on comfortably. Peter turns to look at Tony.

“I can’t. You know what I am. I can’t go back, you’ll report me.”

“I won’t do it,” Tony assures him.

“Why should I trust you? You know the Registration Act better than anyone else. They’ll take me away.” His voice shakes. He sounds paranoid but he’s just scared. For the last 2 years, he lived in constant fear of being discovered, of being taken away, scared of the unknown. Every choice he made was driven by fear.

“I promise you I won’t.” Tony’s not sure if Peter is listening because he stands there, frozen in place. The good thing is that Peter hasn’t made a move to try and fly so that means that he is listening at least a little. Tony leans forward.

“The only ones that know about this are you and me. And I promise that I won’t say anything.”

Peter feels his heart beating fast in his chest. For a moment, he tries to calm down and he considers Tony’s words. He has been working with Tony for the last year or so and from what he has observed, Tony seems to be telling the truth. He doesn’t seem like the type of person that would go behind someone’s back.

A sudden gust of wind pushes Peter back, making him lose his balance. He flails his arms trying to regain his balance, he involuntarily steps back and his foot slips. Peter gasps when he starts falling and he closes his eyes. A strong hand wraps around his wrist and pulls hard enough that he’s brought forward.

Peter falls on his hands and knees on the floor. Peter’s hands shake, due to fear or adrenaline, he’s not sure. Probably both. Peter lifts his gaze slowly to look at Tony. He takes a few steps back giving him space.

“You’re in no condition to fly. Please, Peter, let me help you.” Tony doesn’t dare come close. Not wanting to risk what just happened again. 

Tony waits.

And waits.

And waits a little more. He’s not sure what Peter is going to do. He’s about to give up when Peter speaks up.

“Ok.” It’s barely a whisper, but Peter says it. 

Tony’s eyes widen, taken by surprise by the sudden change in mind but he doesn’t comment on it. He makes a move to help him up, but Peter flinches. Tony stops his movements and waits for Peter to stand up and follow him. They walk back towards the door and down the stairs. Peter stays behind and away from Tony, but he follows him down.

* * *

After their ‘little’ episode on the roof, Tony’s glad he finally convinced Peter to go back to the room on the Medbay where he woke up a few minutes ago. Peter walks slowly, dragging his feet. Tony knows he won’t say anything but he can see the kid is beyond tired. Once they enter the room, Tony motions Peter to sit on the bed. He sits, his feet dangling over the edge. 

Tony taps his jean pockets and takes his phone out. He starts typing.

“Wait just let me text -“

Peter stands up quickly when soft footsteps come their way. Due to his sensitive hearing, he hears it before anyone can.

Tony looks at him confused when all of a sudden his eyes widen in surprise and he turns towards the door and then back to Peter.

“Peter - “

Peter takes a step back. His breathing starts to quicken.

“You promised nobody would know,” Peter whispers.

“Kid listen - ” Tony starts saying but before he can continue, a man steps inside the room. Peter steps back even more, putting more distance between them. Said man was oblivious to what is going on around him. He’s wearing a plain t-shirt with dark blue jeans. He also has a white lab coat and reading glasses. He keeps talking and looking down at the chart on his hand, flipping through the pages in a fascinated way.

“Tony you won’t believe this, the analysis shows that -”

“Bruce,” Tony calls his attention.

The man, Bruce, stops talking and looks at Tony who subtly shakes his head. Bruce then turns and looks at Peter whose shoulders are tense and eyes are wide with fear, analyzing every movement. It’s like Peter’s ready to bolt at the first chance he gets. Bruce lowers his arms and tries to get closer and Peter steps back. Peter grimaced when the sudden step back made his injured wing bump against the wall but his gaze never leaves Bruce. 

“Don’t,” Peter says.

Bruce stops and stays where he is, respecting Peter’s decision to have some distance between them.

“Please don’t worry Peter. I’m a doctor.” 

Peter doesn’t move from where he is, not trusting anything he’s saying. When Peter heard the word ‘doctor’ his breathing quickened, his chest following its rhythm. Knowing that it would be hard to gain Peter’s trust, Bruce looks over at Tony. They stare at each other, a silent conversation going on that Peter doesn’t get. He looks back and forth between the two men. Finally Tony points his head towards Peter. The man, Bruce, looks a little unsure, in the end, he sighs and looks at Peter.

“You can trust me, Peter. I am also inhuman.”

Peter’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Bruce looks so normal that Peter would have never imagined that he’d be inhuman.

“Oh”. He says, now knowing what to say. His shoulders lower a little, some tension leaving them, but then another thought crosses Peter’s mind.

“Prove it. Prove to me that you’re inhuman.”

Bruce blinks quickly a couple of times, not expecting that question.

“I’m afraid I can’t ‘show’ it.”

Peter frowns and tilts his head slightly. Tony takes the opportunity to step in and he clasps a hand on Bruce’s shoulder and brags.

“My dear friend Bruce Banner here-“

“Tony, please stop-“

“- is the Hulk.” Bruce gives him a dead serious look, not enjoying Tony’s amusement. Tony on the other hand keeps smiling at him, not phased by Bruce’s annoyance. 

“Tony, I told you not to -”

“You mean the Hulk is Bruce Banner?” Peter interrupts.

They both turn to look at Peter in surprise. He’s smiling softly for the first since he woke up. He steps a little closer to them.

“Say what now?” Tony says before even registering what he said. Peter shrugs. 

“I mean, the Hulk is cool but Bruce Banner is way cooler if you ask me.”

Tony looks confused while Bruce is surprised. They keep staring at each other for a few seconds. Tony is the first to break it by clearing his throat.

“Well, that’s a first.”

The silence comes back again. Peter takes that moment to sit down near the edge of the bed once again. Tony’s glad his shoulders lower, even more, releasing the tension that was there before. Looking at Bruce, Peter says:

  
  
  


“I noticed my wing, uhm - my wing’s broken.” Peter gestures to his left side, being careful not to move too much. He looks down and grabs the edges of the bedsheets that hang off his shoulders nervously.

“Will I be able to fly again?” Peter looks up, his expression grim. By the looks on Tony’s and Bruce’s face, Peter’s not sure of the answer. Nothing like this has happened to him before. When he was younger, he would have loved the opportunity to have his wings ‘removed’.

Back when he was 14 years old, lumps started to form on his back. He was worried at first. He googled the symptoms and the closest thing he had found was that it might have been a lipoma. Overall it wasn’t that bad. He decided that if it got worse, he would tell May, with her being a nurse.

A few months passed and things got way worse. He noticed that whenever he sat or had his back against any surface, the lumps were starting to bother him. Any pose would leave him feeling uncomfortable. When he saw his back on the mirror a loud gasp escaped his lips. The lumps were growing. The odd shape reminding him of little bird wings. Inspecting it with a closer look he could see actual  _ feathers _ coming out.

In his panicked state, he had grabbed some scissors. After a painful couple of hours that left his back sore and his cheeks red from crying, he gave up. It had hurt too much. He made sure to clean the red mess so that May wouldn’t find out. Nobody could know. He wasn’t even sure of what. But what he knew was that whatever that was, it wasn’t normal. 

A few weeks later, he had seen the news about some people that had special abilities. They were never the same and very different from one another. The news started to call these people ‘inhuman’. Peter almost dropped the glass of water he had in his hand.

_ I’m inhuman _ .

Cases regarding Inhumans started to be more and more common. Sadly, the news was always negative. The ‘normal’ people started complaining about them, asking the authorities to do something about them.

After seeing that, Peter had decided to stay hidden. He wasn’t sure what would happen to him if anyone found out. 

But after having them for almost 2 years, he couldn’t imagine his life without being able to fly. Sure it’s hard to get used to them and having to wear loose and baggy clothes to hide them but it’s all worth it in the end.

So now, he waits for the answer, hoping it would be good news. Tony looks at Bruce unsure. Bruce takes a step closer to Peter.

“It’s hard to say.”

Peter looks down, his eyes are glassy and his expression downcast.

“But we haven’t seen anything like this before so you might make a full recovery.” Bruce continues to cheer him up a little. He keeps talking.

“I think that we should monitor it every other week and see how the healing process progresses. You can go home and heal -”

“I can’t go home.” Peter looks up quickly and stares at them. Tony crosses his arms and looks at him.

“Does your family know?” Tony asks.

Peter nods slowly and Tony tilts his head in confusion.

“My aunt knows,” Peter clarifies. He remembers the day he told May about his ‘condition’. It was harder to keep his secret a secret so he decided to tell her. Was it hard? Definitely. He had spent the whole week of different scenarios of how the conversation could go. Honestly, what kept him awake was whether May would report him or not. So when the day came, May had been shocked. She was at a loss of words and said she had to think it through. To Peter’s immense relief she said she wasn’t going to say anything. Their dynamic was awkward at first but soon it went back to what it always had been. 

“But what if someone sees me? I can’t fold my wing, not until it’s healed. I - I don’t know what to do.”

Even though the kid doesn’t say it, Tony can see it.  _ He’s afraid _ . And it might have been Tony’s fault. He now understands why Peter had been so afraid when he woke up. Tony had helped with the drafting of the Registration Act after all. It makes sense that he would report any Inhumans, even more so than any other civilian. 

At the time it had seemed like a good idea. It helped in making a list of every Inhuman out there, listing their abilities and numbers that categorized them from dangerous to very dangerous. 

Now, looking at Peter, at this brave yet scared kid in front of him, a kid who risked his life, Tony knows the Act is not right. Tony had good intentions with it but it’s not the right way. As he looks at Peter, it proves to him that not all of them will use their abilities for selfish gain. He makes a promise to himself to start thinking of a way to change it so it would be fairer to the rest of the Inhumans. 

Tony sits beside Peter and places his hand awkwardly but gently on his shoulder. To Tony’s surprise and relief, Peter doesn’t flinch this time.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. You can stay here while you heal. How does that sound?”

Peter’s eyes widen ever so slightly. His gaze shifts from one eye to the other, searching for any deceit but finds none.

“Are you serious?”

“Sure. It’s the least I can do.”

Muttering a small ‘thanks’ Tony notices Peter blinking a little slower than usual. Knowing that Peter wouldn’t say anything about being tired, Tony gets up and claps his hands.

“Why don’t you rest up? We can patch that wing after you wake up and in the meantime, I’ll give your aunt a call to explain the situation.”

“Please tell her it wasn’t that serious.” 

Tony raises an eyebrow because  _ yeah, it was very serious _ .

“She freaks out easily about this stuff.”

Tony lets out a small laugh.

“I can’t make any promises. Get some rest kid.” 

* * *

Tony gets a little worried when Peter doesn’t wake up after being asleep for more than 6 hours but he figures he must have been dead tired considering all he went through. Tony wouldn’t admit this to anyone but finding Peter on the ground covered in bruises and cuts and a wing that didn’t look right, it had left him unnerved. He had grabbed Peter carefully and took him to the MedBay inside the compound. Luckily, with the alarms that had gone off earlier, the compound was mostly empty. Nobody saw them go in. 

With Peter’s arm draped over his shoulder, he reached the MedBay but looked around suddenly becoming aware that he had no idea how to treat him. The cuts and bruises were going to be easy but he was worried about the left-wing. Knowing no one else he could trust, he called Bruce. It took some time but he got there fast. Tony led Bruce inside the building. The doctor was confused as he followed Tony. He hadn’t heard any information of what Tony was up to but he owed it to his friend. Tony had looked around to make sure that no one was around by accident. 

Bruce’s eyebrows shot up and his eyes widened at the sight of the unconscious kid lying on his stomach with wings stretched out. They exchanged a few words and Bruce took a small blood sample from Peter so they could treat him accordingly.

But then, before Bruce returned with the results, Peter had woken up unexpectedly, ran off, and the whole rooftop thing. As promised, he had called his Aunt. It wasn’t an easy conversation but it was ok. Knowing that Peter was okay was all that May needed to hear. Now Tony was left waiting for Peter to wake up.

As soon as Peter stirs, Tony texts Bruce to come over. While he waits, Peter manages to fully wake up and sit on the bed. His eyes still look tired, but not as exhausted.

Together, Tony and Bruce with lots of gauze manage to wrap Peter’s wing in its natural folded position. Peter inhales sharply at the sudden pain but he doesn’t say anything. The gauze goes around his wing and torso. They had to start over a second time because it had been wrapped a little too tight around Peter’s torso making it hard for him to breathe properly.

As promised, Peter stays at the Compound. Tony guides him to the area with guest rooms where he can stay. He makes sure nobody is there of course. May makes sure to drop by the next day and leaves some clothes for him. Tony doesn’t say anything but it’s a little funny the first few days watching Peter having to ‘relearn’ how to walk. Due to his wing being wrapped up, his balance’s off. He got used to it quickly though.

A few days later, Tony sees Peter staring outside tiredly. When Tony asks, Peter mentions that he’s bored. Tony smiles and motions for Peter to follow. A few minutes later Peter finds himself jaw dropped staring at what he can assume is a workshop.

It was smaller in size compared to the Tower’s but it seemed to be better equipped with more advanced tools.

“Like what you see?” Tony asks with a smile. Not trusting himself to speak, Peter simply nods.

“Come here,” Tony says and Peter follows without a word. Together they tinker and build. Peter still feels weird about having his wings exposed in front of someone who’s not May but it becomes more natural as time goes by, he feels more relaxed and at ease. He sighs deeply. Tony had given him a few spare parts and he’s trying to make something out of them. Four hours later, Tony’s voice interrupts the silence.

“Need to take a break?” Tony’s voice echoes in the big room.

“No, why?” Peter asks, still looking down. His hand twisting the screwdriver.

“I suppose that you don’t have a bladder problem do you?”

Tony hears a clang. He turns towards the sound source and sees the kid frozen in place like a deer in the headlights. The hand that was holding the screwdriver now open and empty. Tony had never seen anyone’s faces turn red so quickly. Peter softly says:

“You have to be kidding me. You heard about that? How - ? I -” He hides his face in his hands and exhales loudly. “This is so embarrassing.” Comes out of his mouth, muffled but still clear. After a few seconds, he lowers his hands but looks away from Tony, his cheeks still red. He bends and picks the fallen screwdriver and stares at it. For a moment, Tony thinks he wouldn’t answer his question but he says:

“No, I don’t. It’s an excuse I had to come up with. I have to take regular breaks because I would get cramps if I didn’t stretch my wings often.”

Tony hums in response and turns to keep working on his project. Peter does the same.

“Tell me about it.”

Peter looks at Tony with wide eyes. He had never had someone willingly asking him about it. The only person who knew was May, and he had told her because it was becoming harder and harder to keep it a secret. A warm feeling fills his chest. For the first time in his life, someone showed interest in him.

Peter happily tells Tony his story.

* * *

Two more weeks go by and Peter sits patiently on the bed waiting as Bruce removes the bandages surrounding his wing and torso. Tony stands against the wall with his phone in hand. After Bruce’s finished, he looks carefully where the damage was most severe and runs his hand along the top.

“Want to try to move it?” Bruce asks.

Peter is hesitant at first. The last memories he has when stretching his wings are of pain. He starts slowly waiting for something but nothing happens. He keeps stretching it until it’s fully open. Sure he fills the movements are stiff but the pain is minimal compared to a few weeks back. Peter smiles and proceeds to opening and folding his left-wing.

“That’s looking very promising Peter. Your wing has healed nicely, now all you have to do is regain your strength and that’s it. I want you to practice for 20 minutes every other day.”

Peter nods in excitement, 20 minutes is nothing. He could fly for at least 45 minutes without a break. His smile falters suddenly. He is happy of course that he’s healing well, but he was starting to get used to being in the Compound, learning from and building with Tony.

“I should call May, tell her that I’m coming home.” Peter grabs his phone and starts typing.

  
  


“There’s a gym here, big enough for you to test your wings. Good thing is that it’s private so no worries about anyone seeing you.” Peter looks up from his phone and eyes Tony, who is looking at him expectantly, but Peter hesitates. He doesn’t want to intrude any longer. He had been there for more than a month after all.

“Come on, let’s try it.” Tony clasps a hand on his shoulder and leads Peter away.

They walk through the Compound for 10 minutes until they reach the gym, which to Peter is  _ huge _ . He had never seen one like it. Peter walks near the center and stops, eyeing the place. He turns and Tony motions with his hand as if to say ‘come on’.

Peter flaps his wings and takes off. It’s a little awkward because his wing feels stiff still. He doesn’t feel comfortable doing turns or controlled movements yet so he stays there hovering. 

Minutes pass and he drops to the ground on shaky legs. He rests his hands on his knees and pants loudly. His wings are burning.

“7 minutes.”

Peter looks up with disbelief. “What? That can’t be right.”

“Remember, you have to gain strength. In a way, you’re learning how to fly again, gain your stamina back. But again like I said, you can come back at any time and practice here.” Peter smiles. 

“So see you the day after tomorrow?”

“Yeah, see you then.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks a lot to JolinarJackson and Mogoona3000 for ALL your help <3  
> Next chapter will be posted soon


End file.
